Happy Birthday, Chris!

WE LOVE YOU!

We had such a fun day celebrating Chris' 28th birthday! I finally was able to pull off a surprise, so I was thrilled! We woke up and had fresh squeezed orange juice and cinnamon pull-aparts(another somewhat failed attempt...what am I doing wrong, mom??) and Chris opened his gifts. Attached to a big bag of salt water taffy was a note that told him to get ready because we were going to the CIRCUS! Chris' mom came down to watch Taylor and we headed out.
Thank you Lora!

We had such a good time, we had great seats (love craigslist!) and we got there early enough for the pre-show where we actually got to go down on the floor, see some of the animals, watch some of the acrobats perform, and take pictures with the clowns.

(Emma loved this guy!)

The show was great, we did lots of dancing and clapping and the tigers and elephants were of course a huge hit. It really amazes me what they can do.

After naps, we walked to Baja Fresh for a birthday dinner and came home for some ice cream pie (thank you Brett & Kim for introducing me to this yummy and super easy dessert). Emma helped with putting this pie together yesterday and she could not have been more proud of herself. She stirred the ice cream and mashed up the butterfinger bars. So later in the day when she went to wait for Chris to get home from work, she asked for the "cake" and just stood there staring out the window holding it with such excitement and as soon as he walked in she yelled, "happy birthday!". It was priceless.

Thank you for all you do! It's going to be a great year for you!

No feed baby.

Poor Emma, she just has not accepted the fact that Taylor needs to eat.  Lately she has been very dramatic about it...slowly dragging her feet back to her bedroom and throwing herself on the bed or chair.  And I'm so happy I finally got it on camera!  Happy might be the wrong word, but it's just such a scene and you have to know that minutes later she is happily playing with some toy.

Minus the whole feeding thing, Emma really has been enjoying Taylor much more these days.  Taylor is the first thing Emma asks for as she wakes up, I can barely get the door open before I hear, "Tae-Tae, hold her?".  However, I do believe that Emma holds the world record for shortest amount of time holding a baby.  About the second Taylor lands in her arms, she's done and compliments herself by saying, "a great job!!".  She gets the biggest kick out of getting her to smile and loves reading Counting Kisses to her.  But . . .  she also loves to shove the pacifier in her mouth whether Taylor wants it or not,  loves to give the swing extra little pushes, and she loves to go through all the baby toys one by one and tell Taylor that, "that's Emma's".   Yes, I got out the baby toys thinking Taylor would start enjoying them but what was I thinking!  Lets get real, nothing will ever belong to just that baby.  But it doesn't matter what Emma does, Taylor is always looking at her with the most adoring eyes and no one gets her to smile more quickly than Emma.  It's very sweet!

~In other news~

Update on Taylor...

She has discovered her hands and loves to chew on them or anything they grab.  We often find her laughing in her swing and at "la-la" her musical bird and she's finally finding some enjoyment with my made up songs and dances, which I of course love!!

Update on Emma...

Still shaking it anytime she gets a chance and has started this new thing with her hands...kind of along the lines of jazz hands!  She loves making faces and we love to see the new ones she comes up with!  And she has found a love for the kitchen so I try every morning to have something for her to "help" me make for breakfast and her favorite, of course, is making (or cracking) eggs! And my new favorite thing she says..."Who's that guy?"...she'll say it whenever she hears an unfamiliar sound, finds a new toy or when there's a new little boy in nursery.  Poor little guy, she walked right up to him, pointed at his forehead and said, "who's that guy".  It's really hilarious.

Our Annual Bainbridge Island Getaway

This past week was our annual vacation to Bainbridge Island with the whole Ogden family of now 27! There is no other place in the world that is this relaxing and peaceful yet completely exhausting! We exhausted ourselves everyday, but I would not have wanted it any other way. This trip was especially important to us with the blessing of Taylor. We love this little girl so much and she has such a special place in our family. We decided to have the blessing outside which made for such a beautiful setting. The spirit was so strong and there was so much peace. The cousins sang "I am a Child of God" and Chris gave her a wonderful blessing.

So we arrived on Saturday and it only took minutes for Emma to pick up from where she left last year...thowing rocks into the water! It was so warm when we got there, which made for perfect wakeboarding weather. We quickly realized how much Emma loved the boat...she'd cheer on whoever was out in the water to get up and try again and..."no go home!!".

We spent the next few days relaxing, playing outside, chatting by the fire while making smores, and eating some really good food.

(Emma with her "cousin crush", Max)

Tuesday we had a dance party and any time I can see my dad dancing makes for a great day and of course Emma was one of the last standing. Other highlights... seeing dad water ski and going out on the kayak with mom and Emma.

Wednesday we were able to start catching crabs and we also caught Taylor smiling on camera!

Thursday was a rainy day...so naturally we decided to load all the kids up on the boat and take it over to a neighboring town, Poulsbo, for what else but ice cream! Emma tried out the billie cart and went exploring with Jack and the adults went for the late night real ice cream at Mora.

The 4th of July

(Our 3 new little additions to the family~Taylor, Bailey, Lexi)

Probably my favorite day on the island. Emma and I took a walk up the driveway and came within feet of a deer. We locked eyes and then I took off not sure of what his next move would be! Wish I had a picture! Then it was time for another not so successful attempt at a picture of all the kids, this always makes for a good laugh. During naptime, I was determined to just sit and enjoy the view outside. It was perfect...sisters, sudoku, and a cup of hot chocolate! That night was our annual CRABFEST...last I heard we had caught 31 crabs! And there's nothing like a fireworks show over the water firing off our own while being able to watch all the neighbors' shows all while enjoying one of John's oreo shakes!

Our last full day was jam packed! In the morning, we took the boat over to Poulsbo again but this time to get pastries. This is one of my favorite things to do and I think it's going to become a tradition.  For lunch, the families split up to go eat and our little family went to Isla Bonita...of course in true Ogden fashion, most of the family ended up there all within 15 minutes of eachother, which I found hilarious. After lunch, it was off to Bon Bon, a candy store that I have to visit every year! I love their dark chocolate almond brags and of course Emma picked out the first thing she saw! Later that day, I decided to take a try at driving the boat. Lets just say that it wasn't very successful. We ended the day with awesome fish tacos, Emma and Todd bonding over basketball, the 3 toddlers thowing rocks and little crabs while immitating Chris which for some reason made for some over exaggerated hip movements, Chris taking Emma on the kayak per her request and she loved it!, and another late night of games...some which shall remain nameless.

Thank you Mom and Dad for sharing your little piece of heaven on earth with us! We had a great time and wish we were still there!